Jamie Cohen‐Cole. The Open Mind: Cold War Politics and the Sciences of Human Nature. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2014. ISBN: 9780226092164.

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/112184/1/jhbs21739.pd

Interactions Between 'Trichostrongylus colubriformis' and 'Trichostrongylus vitrinus'

'Trichostrongylus colubriformis' and 'T. vitrinus' are nematodes infecting the small intestine of ruminants, mainly sheep and goats. These species are closely related and can occur simultaneously in the same host. Despite such similarities anecdotal evidence suggests proportions of these two species tend to vary greatly between regions, between paddocks in the same region and between sheep in the same paddock. Of the two species, 'T. vitrinus' is known to be more pathogenic making it desirable to know what influences differences in species proportion to possibly manipulate the environment and, therefore, species proportion, or to more accurately predict abundance of 'T. vitrinus'. Factors considered were; anthelmintic treatment, host nutrition, host resistance status, interspecific competition and temperature. In order to study factors affecting species proportion a reliable method of species identification was necessary to distinguish between the eggs, larvae and females of the two species. A variety of possible techniques were reviewed before a DNA based species identification technique, using the second internal transcribed spacer of ribosomal DNA, was chosen. To investigate effects of anthelmintic treatment on species proportion, experiments were conducted on nematode populations from two properties. This work showed that after exposure to a range of anthelmintics, 'T. colubriformis' and 'T. vitrinus' can develop different levels of resistance to these anthelmintics. Results also confirmed that species proportion varied significantly between regions and between sheep in the same paddock

Sub-Saharan Africa's Mothers, Newborns, and Children: How Many Lives Could Be Saved with Targeted Health Interventions?

As part of the series on maternal, neonatal, and child health in sub-Saharan Africa, Robert Black and colleagues estimated mortality reduction for 42 countries and conclude that the use of local data is needed to prioritize the most effective mix of interventions

Compositional analysis of bacterial communities in seawater, sediment, and sponges in the Misool coral reef system, Indonesia

Sponge species have been deemed high microbial abundance (HMA) or low microbial abundance (LMA) based on the composition and abundance of their microbial symbionts. In the present study, we evaluated the richness and composition of bacterial communities associated with one HMA sponge (Xestospongia testudinaria; Demospongiae: Haplosclerida: Petrosiidae), one LMA sponge (Stylissa carteri; Demospongiae: Scopalinida - Scopalinidae), and one sponge with a hitherto unknown microbial community (Aaptos suberitoides; Demospongiae: Suberitida: Suberitidae) inhabiting the Misool coral reef system in the West Papua province of Indonesia. The bacterial communities of these sponge species were also compared with seawater and sediment bacterial communities from the same coastal coral reef habitat. Using a 16S rRNA gene barcoded pyrosequencing approach, we showed that the most abundant phylum overall was Proteobacteria. The biotope (sponge species, sediment or seawater) explained almost 84% of the variation in bacterial composition with highly significant differences in composition among biotopes and a clear separation between bacterial communities from seawater and S. carteri; X. testudinaria and A. suberitoides and sediment. The Chloroflexi classes SAR202 and Anaerolineae were most abundant in A. suberitoides and X. testudinaria and both of these species shared several OTUs that were largely absent in the remaining biotopes. This suggests that A. suberitoides is a HMA sponge. Although similar, the bacterial communities of S. carteri and seawater were compositionally distinct. These results confirm compositional differences between sponge and non-sponge biotopes and between HMA and LMA sponges.publishe

Minimal information for studies of extracellular vesicles 2018 (MISEV2018):a position statement of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles and update of the MISEV2014 guidelines

The last decade has seen a sharp increase in the number of scientific publications describing physiological and pathological functions of extracellular vesicles (EVs), a collective term covering various subtypes of cell-released, membranous structures, called exosomes, microvesicles, microparticles, ectosomes, oncosomes, apoptotic bodies, and many other names. However, specific issues arise when working with these entities, whose size and amount often make them difficult to obtain as relatively pure preparations, and to characterize properly. The International Society for Extracellular Vesicles (ISEV) proposed Minimal Information for Studies of Extracellular Vesicles (“MISEV”) guidelines for the field in 2014. We now update these “MISEV2014” guidelines based on evolution of the collective knowledge in the last four years. An important point to consider is that ascribing a specific function to EVs in general, or to subtypes of EVs, requires reporting of specific information beyond mere description of function in a crude, potentially contaminated, and heterogeneous preparation. For example, claims that exosomes are endowed with exquisite and specific activities remain difficult to support experimentally, given our still limited knowledge of their specific molecular machineries of biogenesis and release, as compared with other biophysically similar EVs. The MISEV2018 guidelines include tables and outlines of suggested protocols and steps to follow to document specific EV-associated functional activities. Finally, a checklist is provided with summaries of key points

Effect of Hydrocortisone on Mortality and Organ Support in Patients With Severe COVID-19: The REMAP-CAP COVID-19 Corticosteroid Domain Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Evidence regarding corticosteroid use for severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is limited. Objective: To determine whether hydrocortisone improves outcome for patients with severe COVID-19. Design, Setting, and Participants: An ongoing adaptive platform trial testing multiple interventions within multiple therapeutic domains, for example, antiviral agents, corticosteroids, or immunoglobulin. Between March 9 and June 17, 2020, 614 adult patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 were enrolled and randomized within at least 1 domain following admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) for respiratory or cardiovascular organ support at 121 sites in 8 countries. Of these, 403 were randomized to open-label interventions within the corticosteroid domain. The domain was halted after results from another trial were released. Follow-up ended August 12, 2020. Interventions: The corticosteroid domain randomized participants to a fixed 7-day course of intravenous hydrocortisone (50 mg or 100 mg every 6 hours) (n = 143), a shock-dependent course (50 mg every 6 hours when shock was clinically evident) (n = 152), or no hydrocortisone (n = 108). Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary end point was organ support-free days (days alive and free of ICU-based respiratory or cardiovascular support) within 21 days, where patients who died were assigned -1 day. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model that included all patients enrolled with severe COVID-19, adjusting for age, sex, site, region, time, assignment to interventions within other domains, and domain and intervention eligibility. Superiority was defined as the posterior probability of an odds ratio greater than 1 (threshold for trial conclusion of superiority >99%). Results: After excluding 19 participants who withdrew consent, there were 384 patients (mean age, 60 years; 29% female) randomized to the fixed-dose (n = 137), shock-dependent (n = 146), and no (n = 101) hydrocortisone groups; 379 (99%) completed the study and were included in the analysis. The mean age for the 3 groups ranged between 59.5 and 60.4 years; most patients were male (range, 70.6%-71.5%); mean body mass index ranged between 29.7 and 30.9; and patients receiving mechanical ventilation ranged between 50.0% and 63.5%. For the fixed-dose, shock-dependent, and no hydrocortisone groups, respectively, the median organ support-free days were 0 (IQR, -1 to 15), 0 (IQR, -1 to 13), and 0 (-1 to 11) days (composed of 30%, 26%, and 33% mortality rates and 11.5, 9.5, and 6 median organ support-free days among survivors). The median adjusted odds ratio and bayesian probability of superiority were 1.43 (95% credible interval, 0.91-2.27) and 93% for fixed-dose hydrocortisone, respectively, and were 1.22 (95% credible interval, 0.76-1.94) and 80% for shock-dependent hydrocortisone compared with no hydrocortisone. Serious adverse events were reported in 4 (3%), 5 (3%), and 1 (1%) patients in the fixed-dose, shock-dependent, and no hydrocortisone groups, respectively. Conclusions and Relevance: Among patients with severe COVID-19, treatment with a 7-day fixed-dose course of hydrocortisone or shock-dependent dosing of hydrocortisone, compared with no hydrocortisone, resulted in 93% and 80% probabilities of superiority with regard to the odds of improvement in organ support-free days within 21 days. However, the trial was stopped early and no treatment strategy met prespecified criteria for statistical superiority, precluding definitive conclusions. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02735707